Montgomery Co Jail in Clarksville, TN is a county detention facility operated by the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. Most people here are awaiting trial or sentencing - this is not a prison, and most stays are measured in days or months, not years. If someone you care about was just booked here, you have questions. Start with the one that matters most right now.
If you are not certain they are there, the fastest way to confirm is the Montgomery County inmate search or InmateAid's inmate locator, which searches across Tennessee facilities by name.
Booking takes time - sometimes several hours after arrest. If the search comes back empty, wait a few hours and try again before assuming they have been transferred somewhere else. You can also pull their arrest record and booking details to confirm the charges and facility assignment. For the most direct answer, call Montgomery Co Jail at 931-648-0611.
Most people booked at Montgomery Co Jail appear before a judge within 24 to 48 hours. At that first appearance the judge sets the bail amount - or denies bail - based on the charges, the person's history, and whether they are considered a flight risk.
If bail is set, your family member can be released by paying the full amount or by using a bail bondsman, who typically charges 10 percent of the total as a non-refundable fee. If bail is denied or the amount is unaffordable, they remain at Montgomery Co Jail until the case resolves. InmateAid's bail and bond guide walks through every option including what to do if you cannot afford a bondsman.
Right after arrest, your family member goes through intake at Montgomery Co Jail - identity verification, medical screening, property inventory, and classification. Classification places them in a housing unit based on the charges, prior record, and intake behavior. It is not a punishment. It is how the facility manages a population that ranges from people picked up on minor warrants to individuals facing serious charges.
For the first 24 to 48 hours, phone access and visitation are typically unavailable while booking completes. Once they are assigned to a housing unit, those channels open up. InmateAid's what happens in jail guide covers the full intake process step by step so you know what to expect.
Your family member calls you - you cannot call them. Calls from Montgomery Co Jail go through Securus Tech® and all calls are recorded except attorney calls. Set up a Securus Tech® account before the first call so the connection goes through without delay.
Phone contact is more important than most people realize going into this. A regular call - even a short one - makes a measurable difference in how someone holds up inside. Do not let the setup friction stop you. Visit InmateAid's jail calls page for step-by-step account setup, current rate information, and tips for keeping funds available.
Visitation hours at Montgomery Co Jail are set by the facility and can change without much notice. Before making the trip, call 931-648-0611 to confirm current hours, any advance registration requirements, and what you are allowed to bring.
The most common mistake families make is showing up without confirming first - and that results in a wasted trip and a missed visit for your family member. General rules across most Tennessee county jails: dress conservatively, avoid colors that resemble inmate uniforms, leave your phone in your car, and bring valid government-issued ID. Children may be permitted with specific requirements depending on the facility. InmateAid's visitation guide has a full checklist you can run through before you go.
Visiting Guidelines
Please visit CorrectPay.com or download the free CorrectPay app to make account deposits, schedule video visits, and send messages. Both you and the resident will have tech accounts to fund messaging and collect messages. The tech account for residents funds messaging, games, and movies. Customer Service for Correct Pay is 855-836-3364. These rules apply to everyone. Visitation is a privilege, not a right.
- If you are a convicted felon or have been incarcerated in our facility in the past six months, you will not be permitted to visit an inmate.
- You will only be allowed visitation with an inmate if he or she submitted your name on their visitor's list.
- No CELL PHONES or electronic devices (Cell phones cannot be left with the Deputy and cannot enter the visitation room. Please leave them in your vehicle or do not bring them at all).
- No bags, purses, backpacks, diaper bags, food, and drinks will be allowed in visitation.
- No SLEEVELESS shirts of any kind (this includes tube tops, halter tops, tank tops, and anything that exposes shoulders or cleavage area).
- No SHORT skirts or shorts (They are allowed if at a reasonable length).
- No revealing clothing (for example: excessive cleavage, see-through clothing).
- Any supervisor, or visitation Deputy, may deem clothing unfit for visitation. Any visitor who violates this directive, will not be permitted to visit until they comply with this policy.
- No sagging.
- Everyone (including children) entering visitation must have a visit scheduled and must have filled out the visitation form available on our website or at the booking window (Maximum of 3 visitors scheduled per visit). All inmates are allowed two visits per week (30 mins each visit). Everyone scheduled must share time with the others that are scheduled. Any conflicts will result in both parties being banned from visitation.
- All adult visitors must have proper photo identification.
- Children under the age of (18) must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
- Proof of custody is required for all minors. You must present a birth certificate or custodial papers for the minor or visitation will be denied.
- Children must remain with a parent or guardian at all times. Children cannot be left unattended at any time.
- No running, jumping, climbing, yelling, cursing, obscene gestures or disrespectful comments.
- You can only visit with the inmate you are scheduled to visit. Speaking to other inmates will result in you being asked to leave.
- When your visit is over, you must leave (Please save any questions for the Deputy for when they are not signing people in).
- Destruction of County Property will be prosecuted.
- We do not accept books or clothing at visitation. We now have a jail library and inmates are issued socks and underwear. T-shirts are available for purchase on commissary.
- No tobacco products (this includes dip and e-cigs).
- If you are a victim of a crime, you are not allowed to make appointments to visit the inmate charged with that crime.
- If you miss 3 visits within 30 days without properly cancelling the visit it may result in the suspension of privileges. Repeated offenses may result in a permanent ban.
- Kitchen workers will not receive visits during standard visitation times. Their visits will be scheduled for a time during the day when they are not working.
Money on the books - also called the commissary or trust account - gives your family member access to hygiene items, snacks, phone time, and postage. It is one of the most practical things you can do and it has a direct effect on their daily comfort.
Montgomery Co Jail accepts deposits through approved channels that typically include online deposit, phone deposit, or a kiosk at the facility. Use your family member's full legal name and booking number exactly as they appear in the jail's system - any error in the name or number will delay or reject the deposit. InmateAid's send money page lists the specific deposit methods accepted at Montgomery Co Jail and walks through the process.
A letter or a printed photo costs almost nothing to send and means far more than most people outside appreciate. Montgomery Co Jail accepts incoming mail addressed to your family member at 116 Commerce St. Put their full legal name and booking number on every piece of mail.
Standard rules at most Tennessee county jails: plain white paper only, no staples, no glitter, no stickers, no colored ink. Photos should be standard print size with nothing written on the back. Mail that does not meet the facility's standards will be rejected - and the facility may not notify you that it was. Keep it simple.
InmateAid's send mail service lets you write and send directly from your phone or computer. We print on approved stock and mail it for you, so rejection for formatting is not a risk.
Books and magazines must come new, ordered directly from the publisher or through an online retailer - not shipped from your home address. Facilities require this to prevent contraband. Order through Amazon or directly from the publisher. Anything shipped from a personal address will be turned away.
County jail procedures, visitation rules, phone rates, inmate search tools, bail processes, and what happens at release all vary by state. Tennessee has its own rules and its own agencies, and what applies in one state does not always apply here.
InmateAid's Tennessee prison resources hub covers all of it - written specifically for families navigating the Tennessee system. Start there when you need answers that go beyond what this facility page covers.
County jail time is hard in a way that is different from anything else. The uncertainty - not knowing how long, not knowing what comes next - wears on everyone. What you can control is the connection. Calls, letters, visits, money on the books. Every one of those things tells your family member that someone out here is paying attention and is not going anywhere.
InmateAid was built for exactly this. Use us.